


Duchesses of Arus High

by Toryb



Series: Plance Heathers Universe [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: A lot - Freeform, A lot of Minor Character Death, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Heathers AU, I will be killing a lot of people, Lance Angst, Lance's Fate: TBD, Langst, M/M, Minor Character Death, No mention of ED in this one though, Quick warnings: If you don't know anything about heathers, Rated m for a reason, The Dark Lance Fic no one but me asked for, but definitely mentions of violence, lots of angst i wasn't expecting, no graphic violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-21
Updated: 2017-09-28
Packaged: 2018-10-08 18:18:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10393107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Toryb/pseuds/Toryb
Summary: In short: Self indulgent Heathers AU. In long: Katie is tired of being a social outcast in school, and when the popular girls, The Duchesses of Arus High, take an interest in her, well who's she to say no? She meets the new kid loner named Lance and soon discovers popularity is a lot bloodier than she ever thought it would be.-DISCONTINUED-





	1. Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks times a million to justpidgance and possiblypidge on tumblr for helping me out with this and encouraging me to write it.
> 
> If you don't know anything about Heathers, a little warning: Characters will be dying but so far none of the main Paladins will be kicking the bucket in this fic. Except Lance. His fate is TO BE DETERMINED. I won't be posting graphic depictions of character death though!
> 
> Chapters are going to be loosely split into songs from the musical (which I HIGHLY recommend you listen to. I won't be following the plot exactly but it's rad music!)
> 
> OUR CAST OF CHARACTERS:  
> Veronica: Pidge  
> JD: Lance  
> Martha: Keith  
> Kirk: Lotor  
> Ram: Rolo  
> McNamara: Allura  
> Duke: Haggar  
> Chandler: Nyma  
> Ms. Fleming: Coran

  _September 1st, 2017_

 _Dear Diary,_  
_It’s the first day of my junior year and I can’t say I’m really excited about the idea of walking into the perpetual big game hunting season that is high school. Matt’s already graduated so it’s just me, Keith, and the other robotics club members. Every time I look around at all the jocks, nerds, student council kids, and general outcast types like myself, I can’t help but ask myself what happened. Back in elementary school it didn’t matter who you were. Everyone was willing to share some of their crayolas as long as you promised not to eat them. Now if you so much as breath in the wrong direction your social status crumbles around you like the Titanic hitting the damn iceberg._

  
_Despite my perpetual outward pessimism I can’t help but hope that this year will be different. I’ll walk through those red double doors, Shiro and Keith will finally realize they’re destined to get married and stop making it impossible to see past their awkward hand touches and apologies, and “Prince” Lotor will have gotten hit by a garbage trunk after parking his fancy sports car in the designated carpool spots. Both of them._

  
_Kidding._

  
_Mostly._

 

“Are you excited for your first day of school, Katie?”

  
The brunette looked up from her green spiral bound, still covered in stickers of purple alien heads that her best friend had stuck on there last year during their boring Home Economics class. She knew her mom was just being politely curious. Without her older brother to keep her in check, she definitely had a way of getting into some trouble, especially when Keith was involved. Just over summer break the two of them had managed to break into a park after hours (without getting caught thank you), and steal a neon Taco Bell sign. It still hung in her room. They were pretty proud of it.

  
“It can’t be as bad as last year right?” she finished stuffing the last of the toast in her mouth, “I have to head out before I’m late. Thanks for breakfast mom. Best gluten free peanut butter toast I’ve ever had.”  
“You say that every morning, honey.” Colleen Holt smiled anyway.

  
Katie kissed her mom quickly. “It doesn’t make it any less true. Bye mom. Tell dad I said to give the best opening syllabus lecture he knows how to give.”

  
Waiting outside for her in his signature beat up red truck was Keith Kogane, her best friends since glue eating years. Red’s cherry coating had worn away from countless dirt road trips to reveal her chrome interior. They’d been through two years of poor decisions in his distressed disaster. Not old, he always said, just well loved.

  
“You know, you could drive yourself to school one day,” he laughed gesturing to the driveway where her green BMW beetle was parked, “It gets better gas millage.”

  
“I could do a lot of things. But car pooling is better than the environment and I’d miss the stale smell of smoke and bad decisions I’ve gotten used to.”

  
“Yeah yeah. Ready for the shit storm Shorty?”

  
“You know it, Mullet. Let’s do this. Ten bucks says Rolo stumbles in totally cross faded.”

  
He snorted, tossing a cigarette out the window as he started his car. “If you wanted to steal ten from me all you had to do was open my wallet.”

Unsurprisingly, nothing felt any different from any other year. The halls were still the same color of vague beige they had always been. Blue lockers were still stacked on top of one another, students crowding the halls around them. Gossip bounced off the walls. Who had done what and who over the summer break. Someone had seen Professor Coran dancing on the great wall of China; so and so was posting a nude pictures on Instagram.

  
And she was still stuck with a bottom locker.

  
Fuck.

  
“Having fun down there?” Keith snorted from above her.

  
“Shut up or I’m picking the movie tonight. And I’m telling you now it’s going to be a documentary on Netflix. The one about the sex robots and the guys who wear doll masks during sex.”

  
He groaned, “Where the fuck do you even find those weird things?”

  
Before she could answer the breath rushed from her lung. Clutching her nose where it had hit, Katie spun around to see who had body slammed her into the metal ridges of the locker. To not one’s surprise, not even her own, of course she locked eyes with Lotor, the biggest dick in school and, naturally, quarterback of the football team.

  
Lotor was often referred to as the Prince of Arus High School. It was a nickname he’d bestowed upon himself, but for the son of the principal it was fitting. No matter what he and his friends did wrong, there was always an excuse as to why he couldn’t be punished. Lost paperwork, insufficient evidence, the entire nepotistic shebang. And for some reason that was beyond even Katie’s realm of understanding, girls liked him. Would follow him around at his every beck and call, liked him. A practical harem of woman basking in the glow of their Prince.

  
“Watch it, asshole! I’m right here.” The words were out before she could stop herself.  
Keith’s blue eyes met her caramel ones. Wide and in disbelief.

  
Oh shit.

  
“Did you say something nerd?” the jock retorted, eyes narrowing in on her smaller frame.

  
Katie had two options now. Either back down and live to write complex equations another day, or finally stand up for herself and the other social nobodies. Rage drowned out practicality.

  
“Yeah I did.” She stood. It wasn’t intimidating or impressive, but the height change certainly made her feel better if nothing else. “I said watch it. You have no right to treat me like that. You’re a high school has-been waiting to happen. You’re graduating this year but the next time I see you after that you’ll be reminiscing about your glory days while bagging my groceries.”

  
Keith, somehow arising as the practical voice of reason, cupped his hand over her mouth and pulled her close. A few muffled protests escaped until she was finally silenced.

  
“What she means to say is be careful.”

  
Like hell that’s what she meant to say. And Lotor wasn’t buying it either.

  
He took a step closing, looming over them intimidatingly. “Listen dweebs. I run this place so if you want to ever look through another telescope or whatever geeky shit you do again, I suggest you treat me with the respect and reverence I deserve. Keep your girlfriend in check, Mullet Man. Before she makes things harder on both you loners.”

  
Satisfied with his threat, the Prince left to join his second in command: Rolo. Not the sharpest tool in the shed, but by far not the dumbest jock in the box, Rolo made for an interesting phenomenon. He would have been lumped in with the stoner crowd if he hadn’t been the only reason for one of their schools two winning games. His popularity and underground connections made him a perfect partner to finish off the hellish duet.

  
“And what was that?” she spun on her friend, knocking him in the face with her ponytail. “Normally you’d be encouraging me to start a fight in the middle of the hallway. You’re the one that started the food fight that got us suspended for two weeks last semester.”  
Keith sighed, letting his face slip out of it’s nonchalant bad boy routine for a brief moment.

  
“That’s just the thing. My social worker says if I get into another fight this year, I’ll have to start going to anger management classes. Not exactly high on my list or priorities. I’ve got better things to do then talk about my daddy issues to some old guy. If I wanted to do that I’d take Mr. Coran’s class.”

  
Silence hung in the air for a moment, letting the severity of the situation sink in. Keith didn’t talk about his life outside very often. Bouncing from foster home to foster home wasn’t an exciting story he always said. This moment of openness meant something. So, she hugged him. Tightly.

  
“That really sucks dude. Sorry I’ll try and keep my mouth shut.”

  
He gave a soft smile, ruffling her hair.

  
“Thanks, Pidge. I’m going to head to class. See you in fourth.”

  
“Yeah later.”

  
Katie pulled the last of her books from her locker. Advanced Placement Physics, Calculus BC, introduction to environmental biology, whatever that meant. She looked down to check the clock on her wrist. Apple’s analog number confirmed there was just enough time to sneak into the bathroom before the final class bell rang. It’s not that she didn’t want to go to Coran’s Shakespeare Class so much as…she didn’t want to go to Coran’s Shakespeare class. The eccentric, mustache man always had the strangest syllabus days, and after her little fight with the Prince, she wasn’t looking forward to the excitement. She’d brought her laptop, maybe first period would be spent coding in one of the bathroom stalls instead.

  
Fifteen minutes had passed blissfully alone before she heard the bathroom door open again. Quickly, she tucked her legs up to avoid any suspicious teacher’s eyes from peering under the stall and seeing her definitely ditching the first day of classes. She listened to soft click of heels followed by the entrance of two other pairs.

  
“Nyma, I totally heard you hooked up with Rolo over the break. Was he has hung as the rumors say he was?”  
No way. On accident, Katie has stumbled upon the first period meet up of only the most elite social circle of them all: the Duchesses of Arus. None, not even Lotor and Rolo, were as elusive, exclusive, and down right powerful as the three girls she heard giggling outside the thin blue stalls.

  
There was Allura, the cheerleading captain. Her father was a Diplomat somewhere in Europe. She spoke three languages, was loaded, and absolutely gorgeous. With hair whiter than snow white’s skin could ever hope to be and a smile that could kill, even Katie couldn’t help but feel her heart flutter whenever they passed by each other in the halls. Allura was probably the nicest of all the duchesses, but it made her no less intimidating. Her signature color was yellow.

  
Then was Haggar. No real discernible personality other than a weird obsession with dead bodies, but she ran the yearbook committee and had the power to put the most unflattering pictures she could find and print them on paper forever. Her parents were also friends with Principal Zarkon. She wore green and her power nearly had no end.

  
No end, but Nyma. The Queen. The untouchable. Everyone who walked into Arus High immediately fell under her rule. If she said jump, the school shook. If she said sing, the halls were filled with music. As if it was painted with the blood of her enemies, everything she wore was red. She was nothing short of a mythic bitch.

  
“Rolo is honestly so whatever,” Nyma said, “I couldn’t care less about that guy. All I wanted was a bed to crash in and a joint to smoke.”  
Katie could practically hear her red painted lips part, see the red scrunchie that held her hair up. The scrunchie, such an arbitrary symbol of her power. She would give anything to have the freedom that came with that kind of popularity. No one slamming her into lockers. No one throwing things at her in class. Just a single day of high school that didn’t involve ridicule.

  
The door opened again, and Dr. Ulaz’s deep voice resonated off the bathroom tiles, “I thought I might find you girls ditching class in here.”

  
Nyma gave an overdramatic gasp, “Us? Ditching class? We’d never. Haggar wasn’t feeling well so we came to the bathroom to let her get a rest. Isn’t that right Haggar?”

  
“That’s right Dr. Ulaz.”

  
As the group argued, Katie pulled out a pen and paper from her backpack. This was her moment; her opportunity to escape the drab and lonely life of a social misfit for even a few minutes. She mimicked the loopy cursive she’d seen Mr. Coran write on the white board a million times. Finally, satisfied, she opened the stall door.

  
“As I’ve said before girls, if you don’t have a hall pass I’m afraid its detention for the next three days. For all of you.”  
“Actually Sir,” god did her voice always sound this squeaky? She tried to let it fall to a tolerable octave, extending the note out for him to see, “We are out on a hall pass. I had to go to the bathroom and they were waiting for me to finish up. It’s for yearbook.”  
The older man took it, yellow eyes studying the writing intently. She could tell he looked for any faults in her forgery. Unfortunately for him there wouldn’t be any. Hacking didn’t make a lot of money in high school, but fake doctor, parent, and teacher notes certainly did.  
After a few more seconds, he handed it back to her.

  
“I supposed everything is in order. Get back to class quickly.”

  
And then Dr. Ulaz left without a second glance back. Nyma took the note for Katie’s hand, curiously examining it.  
“This is an excellent forgery. How did you get so good at it?”

  
She gave a nervous laugh, “You know what they say. Practice makes perfect.”

  
Allura swooped the younger girl in a hug, bright smile plastered on.

  
“Thank you very much for your assistance. Without you we surely would have been caught, and I have practice after school today I simply cannot afford to miss. The younger girls are still in desperate need of training. What’s your name so I can thank you properly?”  
“Oh um…Katie…Katie Holt.”

  
Surprised couldn’t accurately explain how she felt at this moment. In awe? Maybe. Touched by an angel? Possibly. One of the duchesses wasn’t just acknowledging her, but touching her. Speaking to her. Had she accidentally fallen asleep and drowned in the bathroom?

  
“Nothing comes without a price,” Haggar sneered, “What do you want?”

  
Nyma snapped, “Shut up idiot. That’s no way to be thankful. But she has a point. What is it you want?”

  
Pidge steeled herself. Now or never.

  
“Let me sit at your lunch table today. Just one afternoon, you don’t even have to talk to me. If I get seen around you guys then hopefully Rolo and Lotor will finally leave me alone.”

  
Both the green and the yellow duchess turned to look at their Queen. No one moved without her permission and the silence hung in the air, thick and palpable. Maybe she’d asked too much. Maybe she’d gone too far with her request and now she was going to die a painful social death. There went any hope she had of a normal high school life away in smoke all because she’d gotten too greedy.  
Finally, after what felt like an eternity and then some, Nyma spoke.

  
“You sure do have a lot of gall. But for a greasy little nobody you are sort of cute,” She cupped Katie’s cheeks in her hands, studying her for a few seconds before nodding once, “Allura your hair brush and that old blue blazer you keep in your bag. Haggar, lip gloss and mascara. I think this girls got some potential. What do you say to a makeover?”

  
Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Katie nodded.

  
With a snap of their Queens’s fingers the other duchess’ descended upon her. They spent the better part of first period pulling, poking, and prodding at her. If she so much as thought up a protest she was silenced quickly. The hair spray can being unloaded into the bathroom had probably set back ozone layer repair by a good twenty years.

  
“Do you have any contacts?” Allura asked, looking over her, “Your eyes are far too pretty to keep hidden!”

  
Nyma nodded in agreement, “More importantly, your glasses look like thrift store rejects.”

  
“Oh yeah um, somewhere in my bag I think. Let me just grab them.”

  
She rummaged around in her green backpack for a moment, trying to remember where she had thrown the pair. Locating them proved to be the easy part. She was way too out of practice for this. After a few fumbles Pidge had finally managed to get them into her eyes. Now she was face to face with her reflection.

  
“Look at you. I might say you’re even…beautiful,” Nyma said, running a hand through Katie’s brown hair. “I’m never wrong. You’re one of us now, take a good long look at the pretty girl in the mirror.”

  
Truthfully, she had never sat down and looked at herself before. Sure a few glances here and there in mirrors she passed or while she was brushing her teeth, but nothing much more than that. What she saw now, was maybe, honestly, beautiful. Different, but not unwelcome.

  
Katie took pride in her long hair. She’d been growing it out since middle school, but the thought to actually do something with it had never occurred before. Allura had skillfully swept it to the side with a braid, trying the end off with a blue scrunchie that matched the others girls. She was wearing makeup now, but not more than she was comfortable with. A little mascara. A little blush. The smallest hint of lip gloss.

  
“I never really thought blue would be my color,” she smiled anyway, “Guess I was wrong about that.”

  
“Let’s show the school the new you. You own this place now.”

  
As the girls left the bathroom, heads turned. It was passing period now, right before second was about to begin. People whispered, but not in the antagonistic way she was used to. No one stared through her at other passing strangers. Now, now they looked at her. Is this what confidence felt like? A never ending head rush of pride?

  
“Who’s that girl with the Duchesses?” someone whispered.

  
Their friend replied, “I don’t know but I want to find out. She’s a hottie.”

  
At the end of the hallway was her locker. Next to it her best friend, wearing his signature red leather jacket, chatting with Hunk, president of the robotics club she. They both caught her eyes and fell silent.

  
Keith spoke first, “Katie?”

  
Her name echoed in the halls, passing from every student’s lips. She wasn’t a nobody anymore. Now she was a Duchess.


	2. Candy Store

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for such positive feedback. I wasn't expecting my self indulgent fic to get the response it has but I am SO ETERNALLY grateful to you all. Hit me up on tumblr, username: Tory-b and request some writing if you want!

_October 20th, 2017_  
_Dear Diary,_

  
_I’ve been part of the Duchesses for almost two months and high school has seriously never been better for me. I haven't been thrown into lockers, threatened in bathrooms, or tossed off of any inanimate objects. People are looking at me like…like I mean something. Like my high school existence isn’t just the “first disaster” part of my wikipedia page anymore. I haven’t had much time to spend with Keith lately, but maybe it’s a blessing. I saw Shiro and him in the hallway together and when I winked at him, he turned brighter than a tomato. I wish I had taken a picture of it._

  
_The Duchesses themselves…well Matt always did say I’m always looking for the best in people. Allura’s probably the sweetest of the bunch. Last night she brought over popcorn and a bunch of old 80s movies and wanted to braid my hair. I never knew that Mr. Coran was her uncle. He takes care of her when her dad’s off convincing Sweden to lend us money or something._

  
_Haggar is…just as creepy as I thought. Every few minutes I’ll catch her staring at me. Not staring like normal people stare but like…I’m a wounded, bleeding antelope she’s waiting to pounce upon. Yesterday she whispered something about my face being so symmetrical, I could cut it in half and both sides would match._

  
_And then there’s Nyma._

“Katie hurry up with that lemonade. God you’re mom is so slow at this, I’m burning up out here,” Nyma fanned herself, basking in the scorching New Mexico heat.

  
The Duchesses had come over for a game of croquet. Why they were playing the ancient game, she had no idea. Maybe it was to live up to the cliques regal sounding name. Maybe it was to look hipster. Either way, her competitive spirit was coming through. Something that their Queen bee wasn’t taking well too.

  
Nyma walked to her red and white stripped ball, placing her foot over Haggar’s green one. No one dared to mention she was out of her turn. That would mean, at best, a mallet to the head. A solid thunk and the ball went flying, bouncing off of the Holt’s various marble sculptures and landing somewhere near their dog Gunther’s dog house.

  
“Oops. Sorry Haggar, I missed.”

  
Allura was the first to break the long silence that followed.

  
“Wow! You won again. You really are marvelous at this game.”

  
Mercifully, Colleen peeked her head from the kitchen, giving the girls a soft smile. In one hand, was a tray holding four lemonade glasses. In the other, a plate of tapas.

  
“Thanks for the snacks mom,” she kissed her cheek, grateful, “You’re a hero.”

  
Her mom laughed, “Well croquet is such a tiring sport after all. You know, I used to play at your age too. In the 80s, wearing shoulder pads, my girlfriends and I would hang out in my backyard and do the same thing. A lot of boy gossip. You know I met your father at my senior prom. He was my best friend’s cousin and I desperately needed a date. She decided to set us up on a date-”

  
“That sounds really interesting Mrs. Holt but we have some boy things to talk about anyway.”

  
Nyma condescension was palpable. Katie had to fight the urge to hop the table and rip the red scrunchie right out of her perfectly curled hair. Luckily for everyone, Colleen didn’t seem the least bit fazed by the request. Laughing and muttering something about teenage girls, she left them to their business.

  
“Any reason you shoved my mom out of her own backyard?” She tried not to sound as pissed off as she felt about it.

  
“Yep. I wanted to let you guys know we’re going to a Halloween party at the college next week. No excuses, I want you all there. And we’re going as cats. Obviously me in red, Katie in blue, Haggar in green, and Allura in yellow. And make it slutty cats. I don’t plan on leaving the party until you’re all getting laid.”

  
Pidge flushed brightly, biting her lip. Would they kick her out if she admitted it? Mock her for her virginity and push her back into nowheresville High School?

  
“I’ve never…Well I mean I never had the opportunity…”

  
Nyma scoffed, “Please Katie, I know you’re a virgin. You weren’t exactly high up on anyone’s ‘fuck me list’ before we came along. It’s fine. They’re college boys so they’re really experienced and not picky either. I’ll make sure to find you someone hot.”

  
Some random college frat boy? Maybe it was naive, but she’d always imagined something a lot more romantic. The plan had been her first boyfriend, someone who’d taken her on a date and kissed her until she couldn’t feel her toes anymore. Katie bit her lip to keep quite. Something told her that Queen Bitch probably wasn’t the one she wanted to be telling her silly fantasies and hopes to. That girl could turn anything into bullying leverage.

  
Allura pulled out her phone, excited at the prospect. The other girls crowded around her. Nyma’s opinions were loud and vocal regarding which costumes she liked best. Not just anything would do. It had to have the perfect balance. Of what she had no idea.  


  
There was a quiet thump behind her. Katie turned and see Keith standing by the fence, straightening his pant legs. He looked messy like always. Her rough and tumble best friend couldn’t put himself together if his life depended on it. She stood and walked over to meet him, offering a quick hug.

  
“Long time no see Mullet Man. What brings you to my humble abode today?”

  
He smiled, ruffling her hair, “I was in the neighborhood and really had to take a leak. Also I wanted to see my favorite munchkin. You’ve been super busy with your Bitch Squad lately.”

  
She could practically see Nyma’s sneer as the table behind her fell silent.

  
“Careful, they bite worse than Gunther does. You know where the bathroom is. Mom also probably has lemonade inside if you want any. Also, you have a key to my front door. Wanna start using it?”

  
“Nope. Have to hone my parkour skills.”

  
They laughed, loudly. In her entire time with the Duchesses she hadn’t laughed as hard as she did around Keith. God she missed him.

  
“Do you really still hang out with that weirdo?” Nyma asked, once he had gone inside, raising an eyebrow, “He’s a nobody. You’re something now Katie. Get it in your head.”

  
She snapped, “Keith’s a good guy. Just because he’s not popular doesn’t mean he’s worthless. We’ve been best friends since I was little and he used to fight bullies for me whenever they’d pick on me for having braces in middle school.”

  
The table fell silent. Eerily so. Regret washed over her near immediately. Katie had upset the queen. She watched the wheels whirl in her head, waiting with baited breath to find out what the punishment for her defiance will be. Waking up tomorrow with her head shaved wasn’t exactly out of the question.

  
“Haggar, what’s the name of your senior Editor for the yearbook? Takahashi Shiro-something?”

  
No. God no.

  
“Takashi Shirogane. He goes by Shiro though. I know he’s friends with some of the weird Robotics people, even though he has the potential to be worth something,” her dark eyes rolled, picking at some of her green nail polish, “Why?”

  
Nyma turned to Katie, smile sickeningly sweet. Her stomach dropped. It tumbled and twisted, watching the Queen pull out a piece of paper and a black ink pen, setting them in front of her. No. No. No no no no no. She couldn’t.

  
“Listen, honey. You’re going to write Keith a note from Shiro. It’s so obvious he’s got a thing for him. Anything with fucking eyes could see that. You’re going to say something mushy about how much he’s always liked him. Make it believable and as a kind friend, you’re going to give it to him. It’ll give him something to look forward to in his miserable loner life.”

  
Katie stood up from the chair, “I’m not going to do that! Are you fucking crazy? Keith’s my best friend. He really likes Shiro and he’d be devastated to get a note like that and then find out it’s not real!”

  
Nyma looked up from her phone, eyes cold and calculating. Her voice was even, terrifyingly so as she rose to meet the girl physically and literally standing up against her.

  
“Are we going to have a problem, bitch? I’m going to tell you one more time. You’re going to do exactly what I say or you get to go back to being a loser. You know what, no, I’ll make your life miserable. You’re stuck with us now, kitten. I can give you everything you ever dreamed of. Friends? Done. Booze? Done. Grades without trying? Done. Boys? Done. Hell I could give you girls too. So unless you want to be the one who’s life gets bent over the kitchen table and fucked: Write. That. Note.”

  
If silences and looks could kill, all the planets in the garden would be dead. Haggar and Allura watched with baited breath, electric hate sparking between the girls in front of them. Finally, Katie sat down, picking up the pen with disgust.

  
“Fine,” she gritted, “What did you want it to say?”

  
“There’s a good girl. Know your place and you’ll have the best junior and senior years of your life, deal? Start with something like, ‘I’ve been trying to hide my feelings for you’ and fill in the rest. You’re taking that stupid Shakespeare class, aren’t you? It should be easy for you to make it convincing.”

  
With every scratch of pen against paper, Katie felt a little bit more of her soul sign itself away to the devil in front of her. She promised happiness, good fortune, but for a steep price. By the time she was done, the weight of the letter felt like a Faustian contract.

  
Keith came back from inside, smiling with a glass of lemonade in his hand. She had one more chance to turn back, to change her decision and keep her friend safe.

  
“Oh hey, I didn’t tell you but Shiro asked me to give this to you. No idea what it is but he said it was important.”

  
And she’d failed. The way his blue eyes lit up, small smile curling at his lips, it was enough to break her heart. She felt sick. Was this who she was now? Someone selling her friends feelings away for a few popular girl’s laughs.

  
“Thanks, Pidge. I’ll read it later,” The phone in his pocket buzzed. He looked at the screen, surprised noise, “Shit. There’s a fight outside the 7-11. Some new kid and Lotor, Hunk says. It’s just started. Wanna head out and catch it before it ends?”

  
Nyma stood. The smile she wore made Katie sick.

  
“Allura start up your Jeep. I’m suddenly craving a Slurpee.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I PROMISE LANCE WILL SHOW UP NEXT CHAPTER.
> 
> Also, for anyone who doesn't know: A Faustian contract is basically just a deal with the devil:)


	3. Fight for Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY Lance arrives. Sorry to keep you all waiting.
> 
> I think I'm going to try and set a schedule for myself. Thursdays/Fridays are Duchess Days and Saturday/Sundays are Cherry Pies days! (Granted it's easter break next week so that might be a little off)
> 
> Come find me on tumblr: Tory-b  
> I take requests of any ships/any prompts!

_October 20th, 2017_   
_Dear Diary,_   
_Holy Shit._   
_Holy. Shit._

When Katie had, begrudgingly, complied and crawled into the backseat of Allura’s jeep, she hadn’t been expecting much. Lotor pounding in some poor guy’s face to compensate for his incredibly small penis like usual. She’d never actually liked watching fights. Keith used to be constantly brawling outside of school hours when they were younger. It was always her job to break it up before teachers or other adults got involved. It would be bad for him to get another visit from the social worker, but he usually wasn’t someone to ignore his impulses. High school fights just never had any appeal after spending most of middle school stopping them. Her friend could get in trouble, and it all just felt like another way to beat people into their respective social classes. Fists weren’t the only way to do that, she was quickly learning.

  
Allura was a fast and reckless driver, and Katie had spent most mornings being driven to school by Keith “I don’t know what a speed limit is” Kogane, who was forced to drive separately lest his “loser germs” get all over the Duchess’ leathers seats. She got the group down to the gas station in less than a minute. Stop signs had been ignored, but the town was small and lazy enough that no one else had been out on the road. Most of the other high schoolers who could drive were already parked haphazardly in front of the quickie mart, and all the adults were at work.

  
Lotor was getting his ass handed to him. Throughly and utterly. Katie was short, so she couldn’t see as much as the others, but Allura would lean down and whisper her information on every punch, kick, and bite. Lotor was bleeding, a lot. His normally perfect white hair was a mess and he was covered in dirt. His fists were bloody with scraps but the new kid seemed to be barely bruised.

  
“What does he look like?” she asked.

  
“Handsome,” Allura replied, “Objectively I mean. Not my type of handsome but he has lovely bone structure. His ears are a bit odd though. I think his eyes are blue and,” she squealed, covering her eyes for a moment, “Oh goodness this is getting far too gruesome! Nyma, we should figure out a way to stop this before the police get involved. I don’t think the shop owner’s are going to be very pleased at the blood on their payment.”

  
Nyma snorted, “No way. I don't want to get my nails dirty with this. You want it done, you stop them yourself.”

  
Katie had not expected her yellow clad friend to actually comply with the ridiculous request. She expected her to pout, maybe make a quiet snide comment and ignore the fight until it settled down some. Instead, Allura took off her shoes and handed them to her.  
“Hold these for me. Those brutes will break them and they’re new Coach. Father just bought them for me.”

  
Pidge was taken aback, “Wait what? Allura what are you doing to do? You can't seriously just jump into a fist fight! Especially between Lotor and some kid we don’t even know! He could be dangerous. What if he pulls out a gun or something?”

  
Her words fell on deaf ears. Allura was already cutting and dodging through the crowd with relative ease. Stupid height advantage. Katie tried to follow her, muttering quick apologies to anyone she accidentally knocked elbows with. No one minded her much. They were all too involved in the blood bath happening, cheering and shouting. It looked like some of them were even placing bets on who would be the first one to pass out. They were not looking in Lotor’s favor.

  
“That is enough you two.”

  
Pidge emerged just in time to see her friend rip the two boys apart from one another without so much as breaking a sweat. Her hair hadn’t even been rattled. Was Allura some kind of Goddess? Suddenly she recalled something about “lifting weights with Shay and Shiro at the gym every Tuesday and Thursday” and one time “being able to bench press Coran”.

  
“All this fighting is ridiculous, don’t you think? Honestly you aren’t children throwing fits in your mother’s bedrooms over sweats anymore. Especially you,” she eyed Lotor threateningly.

  
Allura had known the Prince for most of her life. Both their dads had been good friends growing up, working together on something top secret that was always mentioned in vague hand gestures whenever she was around Alfor. It was no secret Lotor followed Allura around in hopes of getting laid. So far he was zero for seventeen on the pickup lines, but at least he got points for tenacity.

  
The gathered crowd groaned, cursing the Yellow Duchess for breaking up the brawl. It wasn’t usual to get a fight that last more than a few hits anymore. Seems that the student body was getting restless for blood. Well that was definitely a comforting thought.  
Slowly, people dispersed. Pidge took the opportunity to return the shoes she was holding. They were definitely cute, but not so much her size or style. Besides anything more than an inch heel and she would be stumbling to stay upright.

  
“Oh thank you Katie I nearly forgot. I promise we’ll go soon, just give me a moment to explain to Lotor what’s going to happen to him next time I see him fighting for no reason. I swear, it’s like we’re babies again and he’s upset I got the last bite of ice cream.”

  
“Yeah sure you do that. Nyma and Haggar are with Rolo, so I’ll just hang out here, I guess,” she sighed, having been ignored, “Great. Perfect.”

  
The voice next to her was such a surprise she nearly shot out of her own shoes when she heard him say, “Your friend has some muscle on her.”

  
Katie turned to face him. This must have been the new kid; the blood on his face certainly indicated as much. Allura was right he was…gorgeous. Blue eyes, tanned skin, brown hair that should have been more of a mess than it was. He was sitting on the edge of the curb, nursing one of the larger injuries on his hand. He’d wrapped his bomber jacket around it. Not the most effective thing, but at least he was resourceful.

  
He laughed, showing two rows of perfectly white, straight teeth.

  
“Sorry I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  
She waved him off, “No no it’s fine. Just kind of forgot you were there I guess.”

  
“Yeah, that happens a lot.”

  
Cautiously, she took a seat beside him. Being closer gave her a whole new view of his features. Could someone get more handsome? His nose was dusted lightly with a galaxy of dark freckles; his lashes were long and beautiful. She wanted to reach out and touch his skin. It just looked so soft.

  
“I’m Lance by the way. Lance McClain. I transferred here from Florida about a week ago. Didn’t think I’d already be getting into fights but that guy…kind of an asshole isn’t he?”

  
Katie snorted, “Oh you have no idea. He used to follow me around in middle school and staple my hair to things. I ended up having to cut it after he ‘accidentally’ caught it in the pottery wheel during art class in eighth grade.”

  
He laughed again. She sort of wished he would do it forever.

  
“Aren’t you like one of the really popular kids though? The four of you in the monochromatic outfits are kind of a big deal right? You’re called like The Heathers or The Queens or something like that.”

  
“We’re called the Duchesses. Me being part of it is sort of a new development. Like two months ago new development. Not sure it suits me yet,” she sighed, thinking back to what had happened today.

  
Keith was going to hate her. He was going to hate her forever and her best friend of literally seventeen years was never going to want to speak to her again after he found out that it was her who wrote the note. She’d betrayed his trust, exposed and exploited his feelings for Shiro. All because, why? So she could feel a little bit better about her social standing? It was all just making her sick to think about.

  
“The crowd might not, but the color sure does,” Lance winked, “And I always thought I’d never find anyone who looked better in blue than I did.”

  
Katie blushed brighter than the time her dad’s Harvard Law friend told her she would make a good lawyer after arguing her way into a second scoop of cherry vanilla ice cream. Was this real life? Was a guy actually, honestly flirting with her? And a cute one at that? Sometime in September she must have fallen into a coma. That was the only explanation. Maybe when Lotor knocked her into her locker, she’d passed out and was now comfortably on life support in a hospital bed living out her wildest fantasies.

  
No, wait, her wildest fantasies involved a lot more peanut butter.

  
“Thanks you…um…blue looks…good on you too. Objectively you um, it looks good with your eyes since they…they are blue also,” Katie hung her face in her hands, trying to hide her shame, “Please ignore me and let me die right here.”

  
“Nope that would be a waste of a perfectly cute face. Maybe I wanna see it around more. It definitely will make the bleak halls of the school a little bit brighter? What even is that color they’re painted: Sadness Beige?”

  
She looked up, laughing a little, “I’d more call it a Disheartening Taupe. But I’m not great with colors. My artistic ability ends at forgery, which is a lot more like…illegal talent.”

  
“I’ll remember that if I need a reason to get out of my chemistry class. I’m lab partners with this guy, drives me crazy. I want to set his stupid mullet on fire.”

  
Lance suddenly winced, pulling his hand from under his jacket with a grimace. It was swollen and red. The blood was mostly dry but the wound in general did not look happy with him. She suspected something might be broken.

  
“That’s not pretty, is it? My sister’s going to freak if I go home beat up like this. At least my face is safe. He’s the money maker.”  
Digging around in her bag for a minute, Katie pulled out her handkerchief and some electrical tape she’d used on one of the yearbook room computers earlier that morning. She didn’t have bandages but she had enough to makeshift one.

  
“Here give me your hand. If I put pressure on it the swelling should go down some. I mean I’m not a doctor and you should totally see one of those, because if your hand falls off I don’t want to be responsible for the tragedy.”

  
He beamed and offered his hand, “Fix me up, Scotty.”

  
She got to work wrapping, giggling gently at his joke, “Well you’re a big dork.”

  
“Your backpack has a badge that says ‘Aliens are real and probably gay’,” he retorted. There was no malice in his voice, but she couldn’t help blushing.

  
Lance studied the wrap once it was done, giving a happy hum, “Thanks a lot. Won’t you miss the embroidered snot rag though?”  
“Nah. Haggar’s dad made one for each of us. It’s another status symbol, but I think they’re weird so I’ve never used them. The fluffy blue hair tie is enough for me to proclaim my dedication to the corrupt social hierarchy of High School.”

  
Nyma’s voice shrieked above a blaring car horn, “Katie! Get in the car, we are leaving!”

  
He smiled, “So your name’s Katie?”

  
“You’d know that if you read my fancy band-aid. The lack of gratitude really,” she laughed, unable to pull herself up from the curb even at the Queen Bee’s request.

  
“I’m fucking serious Katie. Get in the Jeep right now or I’m leaving your ass here and you can walk back to your house. Five.”

  
Lance smiled, “You should probably get going.”

  
“Yeah I guess I should.”

  
She didn’t move. It felt like she was rooted to the ground by his gaze. His smile, his laugh, his wit: it was all addictive in the best ways.

  
“FOUR.”

  
Suddenly, she was feeling bold, “Can I give you my phone number?”

  
He nodded. Quickly, Katie tore a piece of paper from her notebook and jotted her number down, handing it to him as she stood.  
“Call me, or text me. Whatever I’m not picky.”

  
Nyma honked again, repeatedly, “Threetwoone. Katherine Holt get in this fucking Jeep.”

  
“See you around, Katie.”

  
She offered a quick smile before running back to friends (if you could call them that). Only one of the doors opened, so she had to crawl over Haggar who was less than pleased with the situation.

  
“Why were you talking with that lame ass?”

  
Blushing, she replied, “He was kind of funny. Besides he took down Lotor and that’s got to stand for something. Did you see his face after they were done?”

  
Allura laughed, “More like did you see his hair? He was crying about how he was going to have to go get another blow out tomorrow because of all the damaged that happened to it during today!”

  
“Girls, we have bigger fish to fry. Remember the college party next week? Don’t fuck it up by getting hooked on some high school nobody who barely beat up a pansy ass football player,” Nyma snapped, relaxing into the seat, “Now turn on something that doesn’t suck Allura. All this classical music makes my head hurt.”

  
The rest of the way home Katie spent checking her phone, heart fluttering when she finally got the first message.

  
_‘Hey Katie. It’s Lance. When can I see you again to return your handkerchief?’_


	4. Freeze Your Brain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not super pleased with this chapter, especially given it's my favorite song in the musical. I started to get my groove near at the end but I hope you like it all the same! Thanks for all the support I've gotten, really it means the world to me <3 And i love each and every one of you who takes the time to even read my writing.
> 
> Find me on tumblr at: Tory-b  
> I take requests/prompts

October 28th, 2017  
_Dear Diary,_

  
_I can not believe Nyma actually convinced me to put this ridiculous outfit on. I want a dictionary definition of “slutty cats” to frame on my wall next to a picture of myself in this. Queen Bitch showed up at my place this morning with Haggar and Allura with a bag from Party City that had blue cat ears, a tail, and a tutu with my name written on it. I can’t believe I agreed to do this. I don’t even want to go to this stupid college party. Lance asked if I wanted to hang out tonight, watch old 80s horror movies together on his couch, but no one bails on Nyma unless you want to end up dead in a ditch off the 95._

  
_Come to think of it, nobody really knows what happened to the owner of the restaurant that cancelled on her for her 16th birthday. That’s freaky. Ten bucks says Haggar definitely has something to do with it. Her worship for that girl is terrifying on the best days. If I even breath on Nyma wrong she gives me this look that could give the grim reaper a heart attack._

  
_Honestly I’m not interested in getting hammered at some frat party. Allura agreed to be the designated driver since she has some sort of daughter of a diplomate thing to go to tomorrow but I almost wish I’d offered instead. All the pre-gaming we did sort of left me a bit woozy and I wouldn’t call my stomach the most iron-_

  
The car jolted forward, smacking Katie’s face against the back of the Jeep’s leather seats. She yelped, taking off her glasses and rubbing the bridge of her nose where the frames had dug into sensitive skin. A few days after the fight outside of 7/11, her dog had eaten the last of her contacts as vengeance for her not feeding him the meatloaf at dinner that, according the Vet’s orders, he was not allowed to have.

  
“Shit careful Allura! You nearly fucked up my makeup,” Nyma snapped, righting herself in the drivers side seat.

  
“I don’t think that’s how makeup works,” Haggar muttered under her breath.

  
They were parked in front of the 7/11, something about needing to pick up fatty foods and carbs before the party. All four were already decked out in their costumes. A litter of sexy kittens, Allura had laughed, but Haggar bemoaned Nyma ignoring her Spice Girls ideas. Honestly, Katie could agree she would have preferred that. There wasn’t much forgiving in the way of spandex and tutus. She had never been particularly self conscious about the size of her chest, but in something that hugged the body so tightly, it was hard not to notice the others were filling things out a lot better.

  
“Nose goes!” Allura giggled, placing a finger so daintily on her noise it wasn’t fair. That girl could be beautiful eating a hot dog. In fact, she was pretty sure on Thursday during lunch, she had looked beautiful eating a hot dog.

  
Katie was the last to the party, having lost a bit of her hand eye coordination somewhere between the second shot of Jack Daniels and the first one of orange creme vodka. Tomorrow her stomach was going to be doing some of the most amazing gymnastic tricks. Already it had taken up ballet lessons and couldn’t get the hang of a pirouette.

  
Walking into the gas station with a black nose painted on and only an old blue blazer to hide her outfit of shame was likely the most humiliating moment of her life. Especially given she had no idea what she was supposed to get. The girls had shouted too many different things at once that it was hard to keep track of everything.

  
Scouring through the isles, she started grabbing whatever she could get her hands on that screamed carbs on it. Chips? Check twice. Pretzels? She grabbed four of those just to make sure. One for everyone. Briefly a memory of reading somewhere that corndogs were good for you when you were drunk came to mind. But maybe that hadn’t been right.

  
“Well hello there Katie Kitten. I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever see you outside of this place?” Lance peaked over the isle, familiar freckled face sporting a bright smile.

  
Pinkness tinted her cheeks when she met his eyes, whether it was from the alcohol or seeing her crush, she wasn’t sure. Something about them were so deep and beautiful, she felt like she could get lost in them like on the great wide ocean. But Katie also couldn’t swim. So maybe the sea wasn’t the best place to get lost in for her.

  
“Gotta ask, what the fuck are you wearing?” He laughed, looking her up and down a few times.

  
She groaned, “I told you Nyma was making me go to that party tonight, yeah? Well guess what her ideas for costumes were. Color coated cats. You don’t need to tell me how ridiculous I look. Trust me, I’m aware.”

  
Lance disappeared for a moment before popping around the shelf to stand beside her. He was holding the largest plastic cup size the store sold, nearly empty aside from the melted down blue ice slush at the bottom. Happily, he sipped the last of it up.

  
“I like the glasses though. And I think blue suits you. Did I ever tell you it’s my favorite color?”

  
“Only five or six times,” Katie smiled regardless, adjusting the big frames, head held a little higher than usual. Nyma wouldn’t stop going on about how ugly she thought her old glasses were, “But the context clues were enough to drop a hint or twelve too.”

  
He gestured to the worn out blue plaid he wore, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. This is obviously sea green.”

  
With a little roll of her eyes, Katie looked down at the buzzing phone in her hand. Nyma had told her to ‘hurry the fuck up’ and Allura had listed a few things that were a necessity she pick up. One of those things was a banana flavored Slurpee in their smallest size. That did not sound appetizing at all. Regardless, she made her way to the frozen ice machine, pulling out a cup to fill.

  
“So do you like, live in here?” she asked teasing.

  
Lance slipped his cup under the blue churning nozzle, filling it to the brim with crystalized sugar water and genetically engineered blue raspberry flavoring. What was a blue raspberry and how was it different from a regular one other than it’s completely nuclear blue color?

  
Bits of slightly waved brown hair fell forward as he shook his head, “Nope just work here. I picked up an extra shift when I found out you couldn’t come over. I didn’t have anything else to to do. The new kid doesn’t get invited to parties. Besides, the family needs money. I practically pay rent at home just to help us all make ends meet.”

  
Katie was surprised at his honesty. Most people wouldn’t be so open, especially with a bright smile still on their face. She chose her next question carefully, avoiding things that might offend. Struggling to make ends meet wasn’t what she’d expected of a fire cracker like him, but maybe that was the upper middle class privilege and newfound popularity talking.

  
“Do you have a big family?”

  
He nodded, hopping to sit on the counter by the multicolored silly straws. Red, green, blue, none of them seemed to satisfy him. Finally, he unwrapped a pink one, replacing his regular stripped plastic straw with the heart strapped monstrosity.

  
“Yeah! I’ve got two younger siblings. I had an older brother but um…him and my mom died in a car accident when I was fifteen. My parents were Cuban immigrants and I was born in Florida but we’ve always moved a lot for my dad’s job. He’s in charge of blowing up buildings. Apparently, it was always hard for him to stay tied down anywhere for too long, and when Mom died it sort of…all went out the window I think,” his smile this time was a little sadder and a lot more vulnerable and lonely than she had ever seen him.

  
“He didn’t really think about what it was like for us to uproot so often. Lia doesn’t bother unpacking anymore and I can tell she’s lonely at school. She came home on Wednesday with her hair all messed up. She doesn’t ever say anything though, because she doesn’t want to upset anyone. I try to do family dinners as often as possible to give them something normal but…it’s really hard,” he continued, “With the irregular schedules I mean. Shit sorry got a little heavy there.”

  
Embarrassed from having shared too much, his cheeks flushed, painting his tanned skin with two bright pink spots. Maybe it was the alcohol coursing courage through her veins, but Katie reached out and took his hand, offering a sweet smile and a gentle, reassuring kiss to his nose.

  
“I think that you work that hard for your family makes you really awesome Lance. I bet your sister and the rest of them think so too. But it’s a lot of stress and pressure to put just on yourself you know. Can I ask how many times you’ve moved?”

  
He had to think about it for a minute or two. One of his fingers tapped on the counter, like he was counting backwards from today. “Ten sounds right? Everything pretty much the same every place though so it all blurs together. I show up, I open my mouth too wide, and then get into a fight with the local empty headed jock.”

  
His cold hand squeezed hers. Hopping from the counter, he pulled her down one of the isles. Katie didn’t know what he was looking for, but anything to spend a little more time with him.

  
He leaned in close, whispering, “Want a hit?”

  
The blue-ish slush was presented to her. With a nod, she took it from him. Certainly it wouldn’t kill her any faster than all the other stuff she’d had to drink tonight. It was cold and sweet, just as she’d suspected.

  
“Tastes like I just crushed up some skittles and watered them down.”

  
Lance laughed loudly, taking it back from her, “You don’t deserve this. You’ve offended it. Better than drugs though, right. Not that I ever did any. I mean with the kids I hang around it was definitely offered. But I like this better. What can I say, I’m a sucker for sweets. Maybe that’s why I like you so much.”

  
Katie shouldn’t have blushed. The pickup line was tacky and terrible. But coming from him, some of the silliest things seemed so sincere. After a near failure on her math exam, the first one in her entire life, he’d tried so hard to cheer her up. Alien pictures, the latest memes, pictures of hairless cats because she once joked they were so ugly she wanted fourteen of them. And he’d certainly been the only person to get a laugh out of her.

  
“You’re literally the biggest nerd I have ever met,” she bumped him, unable to keep from smiling, “And I collect succulents named after former presidents. But…I like dorky. A lot better than I like the popular crowd I think.”

  
“Well us geeks, losers, loners, and outcasts will welcome you back at any moment, parading you around as our queen who infiltrated the higher ups and sabotaged them from within. Oh shoot maybe we’ll make you a holiday! National Katie Destroyed High School Day,” he thought for a moment, “Right so not super catchy yet but I’ll work on it.”

  
“Do I win a prize with my holiday? A crown? Sash? Do I get a small kingdom with my face painted on the flag? Because that would be really cool. You have to let me chose the picture though. One post freshman year because that’s when I got my braces off and learned what the heck bangs were.”

  
Lance smiled, spinning her closer to him. Their bodies were pressed together, melding to fit almost perfectly. He leaned down, whispering gently, “I can think of one better.”

  
Oh my god. Oh my god he was going to kiss her. Lance McClain only a living freaking Romeo of her generation was going to kiss her right here in the middle of a 7/11. Maybe not the most romantic setting, but definitely not the worst her brain had ever concocted. Would the raspberry slush taste better on his lips?

  
Suddenly, her phone rang, nearly buzzing out of her bra where she’d tucked it away for safe keeping. Of course Nyma was calling. Right at this moment. Right at the worst time because she could sense just about every moment in Katie’s life and had to actively do her best to ruin good things from coming her way.

  
With regret, she pulled herself away from the boy, answering the call, “I know, I know. I’m hurrying. Sorry I got distracted.”

  
“Stop trying to tongue Mr. Blue Mouth Blue Balls in a fucking gas station. You’re going to get herpes or something. Buy the shit and get a move on. My cat eye won’t be this fierce all night and I want a hot college junior to strip me before I hit menopause out here waiting for your slow ass.”

  
“Yep. Will do,” Katie clicked the end call button abruptly, “Have I mentioned I hate my friends? Because I like, really, fucking hate my friends.”

  
Lance walked her to the counter, humming gently, “Ever thought about saying no. Cool word, just invented on Pluto or something. Which in my super professional high school senior opinion, should be renamed Sleepy, Dopey, or Doc. I’m casting my vote for Dopey, but I understand compromise is a key part of any true decision making process. I’m not a dictator just a simple democratic leader.”  
With a laugh, she swiped her card and finished the transaction. She hung the bag on her arm, giving the boy another quick peck to the cheek.

  
“While I would honestly rather listen to you give a detailed and moving speech about why you think our dwarf planet should be called Dopey, but I have to go get hammered to the point of forgetting how to tie my shoes in front of a bunch of random college strangers. Call me tomorrow?”

  
He smiled, squeezing her hand once before letting go.

  
“You got it Katie Kitten. And by the way? Might I saw you look absolutely _purrfect_ tonight. Really, I’m _feline_ the outfit.”

  
“I can’t believe you were saving those up for when I left!”

  
“What? You’ve got to be _kitten_ me! They just come to my mind! What can I say, I’m a pun _cat-sanova_.”

  
She snorted, giving him a little wave over her shoulder as she walked out, wishing him a final farewell and leaving the cat puns behind. When she returned to the car, Nyma’s scolding voice filled the Jeep. Katie couldn’t bring herself to listen to them, drowning out the noise until her phone gave a surprising little buzz.

**Lance McClain <3**

 

_**One of these days I promise I’ll give you back your glorified tissue** _

_Yeah, but if you keep it, then I know I get to see you again._


	5. Big Fun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to get up. I'll definitely try to update more frequently from now on! I just had massive writers block. Hope you guys enjoy this and thanks for being so patient <3
> 
> I do need opinions: I want to write the sex scene in the next chapter: Dead Girl Walking. But would you all prefer more comfortable if I made a separate story post with the actual sex scene and skipped over it in here or wrote the sex scene out in here and just indicated the start of the NSFW bits?
> 
> Love you all!

October 28th, 2017 (Still)  
 _Dear Diary,_  
 _Allura has been doing shots since we got here. So much for designated driver. But_ honestly _she could use the break. She’s been studying nonstop for her SRT. No, shit, SAT that’s the one._

  
 _Nyma had something that smelt like rubbing alcohol and made me try some. My body is warm and bubbling like crazy! It’s_ really _..._ its _nice._

  
_I have no idea what Haggar’s been up to, but whatever guy she’s got her mouth around is in for a rude awakening when he finds the second set of teeth._

  
_A hot guy…I don’t remember his name. He smiled at me. Smiled! At me! My life is officially awesome. Booze, boys, parties. But most importantly, I don’t feel like some social reject walking through the halls. When I walk_ in _a room, all eyes on me._

  
 _I feel like a Queen! No…No I feel like a Duchess._  
      
There was a bang on the bathroom door, followed by a grunt, “Hurry up in there. I gotta take a piss real bad!”

  
Katie had hidden herself in there to get some writing done before her version completely blurred. She had to mark this night down in vivid detail. Nothing would ever come this close to perfect again, and something in the back of her mind told her tonight was going to be the start of something big. Her first college party: high school was starting to go from big fuck to big fun.

  
“Sorry about that,” opening the door was tricky, but eventually she stumbled her way back into the main area of the house.

  
Allura was seated between two boys, drinking away whatever had upset her. The sparkles from her tutu had shed everywhere, coating the couch and most of the carpet beneath her in iridescent golden shimmers. When her friend noticed Katie remerge, she waved to get her attention. The tall girl stood; somehow better on her feet in drunken heels than Katie was on the most sober of days. 

“Here’s another shot! Looks like you need it!”

  
“What’s the order again?” Katie reached for a lime to dampen the blow.

  
Whatever Allura said next was drowned out by one of the college boys shouts of excitement. Apparently someone had won a round of strip beer pong with Haggar. That was definitely going to be a site to see.

  
The alcohol in the shot glass stopped having flavor around shot three. At the beginning it had seemed like vodka, but now it was as smooth as water. Sometimes the world was fuzz, phase in and out of the clarity she was used to. That just made walking all that more exciting. A build your own adventure but with more throwing up in the morning.

“I should go check on Haggar,” Allura was reserved in her words, looking back at the two boys she had been with.  
    

Both of them were covered in pink lipstick marks. The same coral color smeared across her lips now. Managing to read the situation despite her intoxication, Katie shook her head.

  
“Don’t worry about it. Get back to your fun and I’ll handle it! I needed to go find Nyma somewhere anyway.”

  
In truth, finding Nyma was the very last thing Katie had on her mind. Whatever the Queen Bitch was up to was absolutely none of her business. But it was a good excuse to leave her friend to her frivolity. With only a second look back, she rejoined the boys on the couch, giggling in their arms with a satisfied smirk.

  
Artfully, Katie dodged through the drunken high school and college aged party goers. Some of them were costumed like the duchesses, but others had thrown together haphazard failures. When she’d first come in some frat boy with a backwards hat spent thirty minutes trying to convince her that he was one of the Backstreet boys. Maybe it had fooled Nyma and that’s where she had run off to.

No, no one was that desperate. Not even Haggar.

  
Speaking of witches, her friend was currently spread across the billiard table placed in the already crowded kitchen. Beer cans littered every corner of the room, but were still somehow out numbered by paired strangers with tongues down each others throats. One of the more sober frat brothers was mixing drinks. Kool-aid and whiskey? No thanks.

  
Haggar seemed to be enjoying herself. She pressed against the man, moaning louder than likely anyone in the room wanted to hear. But it didn’t feel right. Katie walked over, giving the man a hard shake.

  
He pulled back, confused and ready to fight. When he noticed the girl in front of him, a feral grin stretched across his face, “Want to join Kitten?”

  
She made a face, taking a step back, “No but thanks for the offer I guess,” the very thought of getting anywhere near Haggar like that made her stomach churn. Or maybe that was the ever present stench of vomit and bad decisions, “Just wanted to say I think I saw some guys trying to sneak in the back by your pool? They looked like maybe high school freshman?”

  
That certainly set him off. The guy all but sprang back from the pool table, grabbing one of the cues.

  
“Fucking freshman. I’m coming for you!”

  
And then he howled, loudly, before running into the backyard brandishing his weapon like he was Indian Jones on his last crusade.

  
“What a weirdo. You okay?” Katie offered her hand to her friend.

  
Haggar slapped it away, sitting up with a disgruntled huff.

  
“The hell do you think you were doing?! I was doing fine on my own. He was just about to take me back upstairs.”

  
Suddenly, she remembered all the reasons this girl was her least favorite Duchess. Took someone pretty great to beat out Nyma, but day like tonight it wasn’t even a close call anymore.

  
Katie rolled her eyes, “Sorry I wanted to protect you from whatever infection he’s probably got hidden under his corduroy pants and stripped polo shirt his daddy bought him.”

  
“Fuck me gently with a chainsaw, Holt, you’re such a buzz kill. Just get out of here, seriously. I can handle everything on my own. You’re barely not a loser anymore. I can’t have you ruining my chances tonight.”

  
It took nearly everything she had to bite her lip and leave the room. If something bad happened, she tried her best to prevent it. Haggar seemed well enough to consent and that’s all she had cared about anyway.

There was a churn in her stomach. It started off as an uneasy shift, like spending too much time on the ocean without catching your sea legs. That wasn’t too tough to ignore. One foot after another. That’s all that mattered right now: focusing on forward.

  
Another lurch. Katie tried to find something to hold her weight. The wall was cold. Plaster felt good on her face as the room spun in nauseating circles. From boat to being a human baby mobile. The light above her flickered in and out of clarity. Sounds fluctuated in intensity. It was hard to focus on anything other than the unsteady rumble in her stomach. God she should have just hunkered down in the bathroom when she had the chance.

  
Before the world could kick out from underneath her, someones arms wrapped tightly around her waist. They were warm, soft, and familiar. Something smelt like peaches and dirt. Or maybe it was the someone who had caught her.

  
Katie tried to lift her head. Thanking her savior was the least she could do. Hazel eyes met the blue-gray of her friend. Even as the world danced around her, it would be impossible not to recognize them.

  
“What happened to you Katie? You never do this kind of shit.”

  
He didn’t sound judgmental, only worried. Keith was worried about her. Her very best friend in the entire world was worried about her. And she had done nothing but use him as a stepping stone to popularity. The thought made her burst into tears.

  
“Why don’t you hate me?” It came out choked, a bubble of pain in her throat popping under the pressure.

  
She doubted he understood even the smallest bit of what she was talking about. Her forgeries were perfect. Not even her father’s police officer friend could recognize the differences in between Samuel Holt’s signature and one of her duplicates.

  
Keith groaned, setting her down on a nearby chair. She was a drunken, glittering mess of tears: certainly something he never thought he would see in a million years. Katie was always the responsible one with them. Having to reverse the roles was a bit disconcerting.

  
“Can I have a reason for my sudden hatred?” He handed her the water bottle he’d been holding. There wasn’t a lot left, but hopefully enough to settle her stomach, “Drink this. You look like absolute shit.”

  
Despite everything, she gave as much of a smile as she could manage, “Thanks. I know I'm sure I do, if I look half as bad as I feel…"

  
The spinning was starting to settle a bit, and the water was helping the sudden hot flash that had overcome her. She still wanted to vomit, but it was easier to fight now that something besides alcohol was seeping into her system.

  
“I thought I told you to stop hanging out with this loser, Katherine!”

  
The shrill vocals of Nyma are more recognizable than her mother’s at this point. The disappointment is just as evident. The anger a little more so.

  
She came walking in alone, looking as put together and perfect as always. Her pigtails were tied up by two red scrunchies. The only makeup moved from place is the red once tinting her lips. It was weird seeing her separated from the pack. Like a Queen Bee leaving it’s nest. There was something even more intimidating in that. No Allura to deafen her blows with kindness. No Haggar to take the brunt of her anger. Just Katie, sitting like a deer in headlights.

  
“And here she comes. You really can’t move alone anymore can you?”

  
“Move away from her mullet man. You’re worth fuck all and I don’t want your gross germs getting all over my latest bitch,” Nyma stepped between them, taking the water from her hands and tossing it to the side, “You don’t know what’s in that. He could have poisoned it or something.”

  
Katie stood again. It took a few seconds for her vision to catch up to her, but she did her best to glare forward anyway. The alcohol made her feel bolder, like even the wrath of the Queen could not take her down. Undoubtably, this was going to end badly, “Back off Nyma. I was just talking to my friend.”

  
The rage was palpable. She knew immediately punishment was on the horizon. Whatever evil was planned, Katie would get the full force of it.

  
“Oh is that so?” she sneered, turning back to Keith, “Would you still be friends with her if you knew she was the one who wrote that note for you? The one from lover boy Shiro.”

  
Keith jumped back, eyes locking onto his friend. The tears were back in her eyes now, confirming what had just been said. It wasn’t meant just to hurt him. This was the truth. The horrible, messy, heartbreaking truth.

  
“Keith-” her voice broke, taking a shaky step forward.

  
The world crashed around her in an instant.

“You…you bitch! You knew how much I liked him! And you…you fucking what? You wrote a letter just to jack off some bitch’s ego? What happened to the promise you were going to be the one person in my life never to let me down Katie? Was that all a lie until you could throw me into oncoming traffic to protect yourself?” His words were venom.

  
It was hard to act in defense when she knew everything she had done was wrong. She had thrown her best friend to a literal pack of wolves for an invitation to a college party, a pair of jewel encrusted cat ears, and a blue hair accessory.

  
“I’m so sorry. I made a mistake and it was so shitty!”

  
“Yeah. Yeah you’re right it was.”

  
Keith grabbed the chair she had been sitting on and tossed it across the room. It shattered, breaking into the drywall and sending bits of wood flying. “Don’t bother talking to me again until you grow a pair and ditch the Harpy squad.”

  
Before she could say anything, he was gone. Katie spun on Nyma, pushing her forward, “I hope you get hit by a truck and it fucks up your face! It’s the only good thing you’ve got going for you!”

  
“I would watch your fucking mouth if I were you! I made you exactly what you are. With one snap of my damn fingers I can have you back in trash cans while you ugly freckled face gets drawn on in the school yearbooks.”

  
It felt like someone had grabbed her stomach and shook it up. Before words could leave her mouth, every ounce of alcohol that hadn’t made it’s way to her blood stream was. All over Nyma’s thousand dollar shoes.

  
No one besides them seemed to notice. The music continued shaking the house, and bodies ground against one another without so much as blinking. But to Katie it felt like the world was in slow motion. Nyma’s smile was as startling as her laugh, shaking her to the very core with fear.

  
“Oh honey. As of Monday Morning you are going to be deleted from Arus High’s social network. Consider yourself dead, darling. Enjoy your last night of meaning something.”

  
It wasn’t just a threat coming from Nyma, it was a fact.


	6. Dead Girl Walking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the support I'm getting. Also season 3? Talk about fucking wild.  
> Important note: I will be writing a separate one shot that is rated explicit that will be the ENTIRE sex scene in this chapter. I decided to keep it out so I could switch the rating of this work to Teen. But if you want to read it, keep on the lookout and I'll add a link to it here and create a collection of the two works.
> 
> Also i hope you like Langst because here's some <3

October 28th, 2017 (Technically)

_Dear Diary,_

  
_The demon Queen of high school has decreed it: as of Monday morning I’ll walk back into the halls of Arus High and be considered a social pariah once again. The girl who threw up on the Duchess Nyma’s shoes. Her SHOES. I couldn’t have picked something more intimidating to do as my last action alive on this planet? Nope it had to be up chucking an entire bottle of Jack Daniels all over a pair of Armani’s._

  
_I could ditch the West Coast and run until I overheat in the desert? No too many variables, and Matt would figure out how to find me. Maybe I’ll go to a cabin in the woods and live out my days as a hermit? Reminds me too much of Keith._

  
_Keith…fuck I am the single worst friend in the entire world. He's going to hate me forever and I can’t even blame him. Sometimes I just wish I could launch myself into space and spend the rest of my life participating in intergalactic travel. I heard once that going warp speed would prevent wrinkles. Maybe from Hunk._

  
  _I hope I can figure out how to fix this mess. I wish life would hit me over the head with a sign of what to do. I’m utterly lost right now._

  
Katie closed her bound notebook with a sigh. The pages were filled with tired, sobering scribbles. They made her sick. Her life was slowly becoming some Nicholas Sparks type of tragedy. Add a couple thousand swans and she might as well print out the script of the Notebook and start reciting lines from it.

  
The bell jingled behind her: indicating the store she had stumbled to was closing for business. The shoppers exited and she watched as a burly man holding a a 7/11 cup hoped onto his motorcycle beside her. Her eyes drifted to the blue crystals melting as he kicked the bike into gear and drove off.

  
 Well, _you were looking for a sign Katherine._

  
A few quick scrolls and she found what she was looking for. One google map search and a half a mile trek and she was standing in the driveway of the McClain household. Walking up to the front door, she heard some commotion inside. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Maybe she should have texted first. Maybe-

  
Maybe she had already rung the doorbell. Now or never.

  
Lance answered the door, wearing an old blue henley and a plethora of butterfly clips in his hair. Pink, orange, blue, and a few that were clear with sparkles trapped inside the plastic. When he locked eyes with the blonde girl, he cursed, fumbling to pull them from his hair in a single motion.

  
“Katie! I didn’t know you were coming over! I was just um…looking fabulous? Doing my nightly skincare routine?”

  
She laughed, pulling at her short tutu with embarrassment. It’s not like he hadn’t already seen her in her horrible get up. It felt weird, like she’d intruded on a private moment looking like a disaster. Disaster: that seemed to be the word for her life lately.

  
“No no I um…I shouldn’t have come without telling you I just…the party was…really bad,” she tried to bite back the tears.

  
Lance looked around his house for a moment, before taking her hand. He pulled her in and closed the door behind them. The house wasn’t anything fancy, moving boxes still littered around the living room. Some were open, old dolls, pots and pans, a few blankets, spilling out. Pictures weren't hung. The fan was spinning slowly. It felt clinical…sterile almost in the emptiness. Lance seemed unperturbed by the situation around him, picking up a few of the toys and tossing them back inside boxes.

  
Katie looked around for a place to sit. The couch was currently occupied by a sleeping girl. She was maybe six or seven, holding tightly to a blue whale as old and worn as the other things around the house. There were butterflies clipped at the ends of her two braids. Lance followed her gaze, smiling gently.

  
“That’s my sister Lia. She fell asleep while we were watching the Little Mermaid. Let me take her upstairs and we can talk.”

  
Without much effort, he lifted the sleeping child. She grumbled in protest for only a moment before her eyes fluttered closed again. The whale dropped to the floor unnoticed by either of the McClains. Katie went to pick it up, but the siblings were already out of view. She took the sea mammal in her arms with a soft smile.

  
 Written on the tag, ratted and worn was:

  
_Little Brother,_  
_I know how much you like the sea. Maybe we’ll go see whales together one day._  
_Luis_

  
Luis. Probably the older brother who died in the car crash with his mom. There was an emptiness in this house that couldn’t be filled by any of the boxes. Any of the painting. Any of the other possessions scattered about. And the only two people who could were long gone, angels flapping their wings in Heaven.

  
The stairs creaked, and Lance remerged, “Lerenzo is already asleep. And if he wakes up he won’t leave his room. He’s at that angsty thirteen year old stage in life. My dad’s out late at work so it’ll just be up for awhile. Do you want anything to eat or drink?”

  
“I would rather never drink anything again,” Katie laughed sitting on the leather sofa, “Maybe some water though? I could use some hydration with the amount I drank.”

  
“I reapply my hydration through moisturizer. Not that you need it. Your skin is awesome,” he walked to the fridge in the kitchen, coming back and tossing her an unopened bottle before taking a seat beside her, “So what happened at your college party? Obviously it wasn’t that exciting if you ditched to come hang out with me. I mean, I know I’m a lot cooler than most fraternity guys and all.”

  
She smiled, relaxing against the armrest, “Trust me you are. But um…I sort of…ended the only friendship I’ve ever had for popularity and then threw up on my ticket to notoriety’s shoes after calling her a bitch.”

  
Lance choked on his water. He took a few seconds to recuperate before laughter filled the small room. Katie threw one of the six throw pillows on the couch at him.

  
“Hey! Asshole it’s not that funny.”

  
“No no, I’m sorry I just, I never thought Miss Katie Holt would ever have the guts to stand up to the Queen of Hell. I’m impressed! Surprised you’re still standing, but impressed.”

  
She groaned, stretching her legs across his lap. Things were comfortable with Lance, good. Even depressed and dreading the future, he made her smile. Laughter followed him wherever she went. Disaster seemed to follow her. Maybe together they could make something beautiful.

  
“Well get my elegy started because I’m going to end up found off the route of the I-15 after this weekend. I’ve got less than two days left on this miserable little planet and then poof. Katie Holt will cease to exist. I’ll be a cryptid. Maybe I’ll end up hanging out with Mothman,” she felt the pang in her chest again, “Keith would like that.”

  
Lance could tell how hurt she was. How stressed. He helped her kick the heels off and got to work rubbing her legs.

  
“And Keith is the friend of yours you fucked over?”

  
She nodded, relaxing into the touches, “Yep. I forged a note from the guy he’s been in love with since fifth grade. I mean, they do like each other. I wasn’t lying in the note it’s just that they haven’t talked about it yet and they really should. No, fuck, Katie that isn’t the point. The point is I ruined our friendship! He’s never going to trust me again.”

  
“Wow. Talk about shitty,” he whistled low, looking up at her with critical blue eyes, “Listen, I'm not saying what you did was right, because it wasn’t. It was fucked but I don’t have to tell you that because it’s something you already know. What I am going to tell you is it’s better you’re out of the demon’s squad. I think…you’re a lot better than all the petty High School drama.”

  
“Thanks Lance but apparently I’m not. I just fueled the fire with my own lame excuses. How am I going to fix things?” she groaned.

  
Lance shrugged, watching the ceiling fan spin round and round and round. “Maybe you won’t. Maybe you will. Life is full of disappointments. Shitty things just…they happen. Sometimes there’s no reason and you’re left alone. There’s no one else around. You and Keith might not fix things, Nyma might ruin your life, but that’s just how the pendulum swings. It has to hit someone. Just so happens it hits people like us a lot.”

  
Watching him sometimes was heart breaking. The world had left deep cuts in his soul, larger and harder to fix then anything she had ever seen. There was always a flicker in his eyes, a fire that the world was fighting so hard to extinguish. She was watching it dying before her eyes, and she couldn’t have that. Not from him.

  
Katie pulled her legs from his lap. Maybe it was a left over lack of inhibition, or the weird feelings she was getting in her cat get up, but she felt bold enough to pounce. His lips were soft, exfoliated with a sugar scrub if the taste was any indication. Everything he did was warm. But the more they touched, the hotter it got.

  
His hands were under her shirt, in the tutu, wherever he could get to. His mouth followed a similar rule. The last of the butterfly clips lost to Katie’s rough touches, shooting across the room, likely broken. Neither of them cared about much else that wasn’t more feeling, more touching, more kissing.

“The world is really unfair Lance, but you know…you’re really beautiful, and every time I’m with you I feel like life gets a little bit easier to deal with,” Katie breathed, panting against his neck when they had finally managed to pull their lips apart.

  
Lance smiled down at her, moving a strand of hair from her face, “I feel the same way. The layer of frosted blue slush over my heart melts a little every time I see you.”

  
Her hands explored his chest, tracing along the lean muscles. It was already a night of bad decisions. Why not make a few more?

  
“So I’m hot, pissed, and on the pill. Want to show me you room?”

  
His eyes went wide, sitting up and offering his hand, “God yes.”

* * *

  
Lia stumbled into her brother’s room, pulling on his sleeve. She rubbed her tired eyes, clutching one of her dolls tightly, “Lerenzo…there’s noises coming from Lance’s room and I want some warm milk…”

  
The thirteen year old groaned. He sat up in bed, hopping off the bed and sliding on his pair of red slippers. He checked the clock. 1:30 AM. What the heck was his brother getting up to this early in the morning?

  
“Stay here, I’ll go see what’s happening,” he yawned, shuffling across the wood flooring to Lance's bedroom.

  
A few steps away was when he heard it. A feminine voice…moaning? Saying something. “There! No…like a couple to the left. My left. Not your left. There…fuck Lance there.”

  
There was a loud crack, a few screams, “Shit! I think you broke my mattress!”

  
Lerenzo turned back around, offering his sister his hand. “How about we go downstairs and get you that milk. I think Lance is a little busy right now. He’s…having really good dream right now.”

  
As he walked down the stairs, a list was already formulating about just how many things his older brother was going to owe him after tonight.


	7. The Me Inside of Me: Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm splitting this song into two parts, simply because if I didn't it would be too long! Warning: Not super graphic content, but mentions of blood in this chapter. If you like my work please consider supporting me on Ko-fi! http://ko-fi.com/torybird

October 29th, 2017  
 _Dear Diary,_

  
_Have you ever woken up and expected a totally normal day only to find out that your entire world is crumbling around you and you’re going to be a literal criminal now?_

  
_Yeah, I never really expected something like that either._

  
_Everything had seemed so amazing this morning. Like a literal dream! But that’s the thing about dreams I guess, you always end up waking up to the cruel sound of reality._  
  
Katie awoke in a tangled mess of sheets. Her head was pounding, making the room spin about in a hungover glaze. When she tried to twist around, the caved in mattress let out an angry groan. Right. They had broken that. The memory made her laugh, but it was the only happy one from last night. An angry Nyma, a drunken mistake, a broken friendship all jumped to mind first. There was a lot she needed to fix today.

  
With a yawn, she sat up, looking down at her sleeping partner. Lance looked more at peace than she had ever seen him, like a tired angel resting on a cloud. Freckles created constellations all across his body. Just watching him like this was addicting.

  
“Lance,” she whispered, kissing his head, “Hey. Wake up before I have to suffocate  you.”

  
One eye opened, a crooked smile on his face. Before she could even react, Katie found herself in his arms, laughing as he peppered her in quick kisses.

  
“Hey! Hey knock it off! I need to leave soon. Let me up.” No matter how much she protested it, the assault of affection continued.

  
Finally, he let up, keeping her pressed closed to his chest. She listened carefully to the steady thump of his heart. How could it be so calm? Whenever they were together it felt like hers went a million miles a minute.

  
“Where are you even planning on going? It’s the weekend. We can just…lay in bed together. All day. Or you can kick my ass at Mario Kart like you always said you would. Not that I believe you, I’m kind of hot shit.”

  
Katie rolled her eyes, “As tempting as that is, I need to try and…fix the mess I created last night. Keith still hates me and I don’t know how I’ll crawl out of that one, but I can maybe try and convince Nyma not to ruin the rest of my school life.”

  
He made a face. “Why do you want her to like you so bad? You tried that and you were miserable. Why keep at it? Just come back to the loser, outcast club. We’ll crown you a hero. Remember? You get a sash. And a national holiday.”

  
“As fun as that sounds, I don’t want the rest of high school to involve getting tossed into trash cans while I count down the days until I can finally drive off into the sunset in my 2000 beetle.” She finally managed to pull herself off of him. “You can come with me today if you want?”

  
It was a silly request. She knew how much Lance hated the crowd she hung out with. If the face he made was any indication, her theory was right. Maybe she could sweeten the deal for him.

  
“We can head to my place and play strip croquette after? My mom's got book club and dad’s busy grading papers almost all day.”

  
That certainly caught his attention. Lance sprang to his feet, “Well then what are we waiting for gorgeous. There’s a she demon calling our name. Well, probably yours. I doubt she even knows what mine is. Probably thinks it’s Leonardo or something. Not that I would mind being associated with Dicaprio. That guy is a stud.”

  
Getting dressed involved a lot of kisses and lingering touches. They would have ended up tangled back together in bed if it weren’t for her insistence that they needed to go. Lance offered to drive. Mostly because Katie’s car was still parked at her place, and if they went there, they probably wouldn’t ever leave. Croquette sounded too tempting right now.

  
They fought over the music. Lightheartedly, Katie explained to him that she couldn’t stand country music. He acted like it was an intense betrayal, “Katie, baby, kitten. I can’t help it. Lived in Florida and then my dad practically drug us all over the South. If I didn’t learn to like country music there would be nothing else to listen to.”

  
“So it’s like music Stockholm syndrome?” she raised an eyebrow, changing the channel back to her station.

  
“Says the girl listening to weird techno beats! No one is even singing Katie. It’s not music!”

  
She laughed, “Who died and made you music guru?”

  
Being with Lance was easy. Every moment was filled with laughter, and she could easily forget about the worries around her. He made her feel light. Maybe…maybe when Matt came to visit next she could introduce them.

  
The rest of the ride was quick. Their town was small and it was early enough the hustle and bustle of the world hadn’t woken up and crowded the streets just said. A calm before the storm she would later find out.

  
Nyma’s house was huge. It sat in the nicest neighborhood, atop the highest hill. Further proof of her rule over the land. She was above everyone else, figuratively and literally. The home had three pools, two inside and one outside, four hot tubs, one of which was located in the girls bathroom, six bedrooms, and a kitchen that felt more like a maze than a place you would get your morning cereal. Katie had only ever been there was before, but being back gave her the shivers.

  
“This seems…unnecessary,” Lance muttered as Katie dug in the pot she knew they kept the spare key to the backdoor in. Or well, one of the back doors. The house had three. If there were three backdoors was there really a “back door” or just a series of funhouse type shenanigans. Now she was starting to hurt her head.

  
“Most of what they do seems unnecessary," she sighed, finally retrieving the brass key.

  
Easily, they slipped inside. She drug through the cabinets, trying to find a cup for what she was doing. A hangover remedy: that would get Nyma back on her side. Maybe. Hopefully anyway.

  
She opened the (second) fridge and rifled through the contents, trying to remember the old recipe Matt had taught her. God what would her older brother say if he could see her like this. She had not only gotten plastered at a party, but ended up sleeping with someone who hadn’t even taken her on a proper date. And now she was attempting to win back the favor of the school’s resident harpy lady.

  
“Was it orange juice? No I feel like it was something else. Maybe milk was in there?” Katie sighed, running a hand through her ponytail.

  
Her boyfriend (what a weird thought) came behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. This morning she had stolen one of his soft blue and white henley and worn it as a dress. Sure, it was a little short, but it definitely beat putting back on the tutu and shaking glitter everywhere she stepped.

  
“Maybe you could put orange juice and milk together and make her vomit,” he laughed, kissing one of the hickies on her neck. There were a few of the dark purple bruises spread across her body. They made him happy to look at.

  
“I don’t think that'll win me her favor.”

  
Despite what every fiber of her body said, she pulled back. While she mixed the ingredients of the remedy together, she didn’t pay much attention to what Lance was up to. Opening cupboards, curiously humming to himself, he made snide comments on the tackiness of the porcelain dishes.

  
“You know,” he said, standing up and setting cup on the counter, “We could just also fill it with drain-o and put us out of her misery.”

  
Lance produced some of the blue liquid from under the sink, pouring it into the mug. She rolled her eyes, “Yeah, and then I got to jail for murder. That sounds like a lot of fun. Also I thought it was, put her out of her misery.”

  
“I don’t know, I think we’re all the ones suffering not her,” he snorted, “Besides I was kidding. Poisoning someone and ending up in jail isn’t like high up on my priority list. Have you seen this face? People would like me too much in prison.”

  
She picked up the cup, standing on her toes to kiss him, “Agreed. Plus, that’s my face to kiss. I’d get jealous if someone else got to call you their bitch.”

  
“Aw, babe. I knew you cared about me.”

  
He took her hand and they ascended the stairs. Pictures of a little Nyma, throwing temper tantrums, meeting famous men, laying outside by the second pool, littered every corner of the wall. It was eery, having her watch them explore her house. Something about it made Katie shiver.

  
Finally, they located the correct room. It wasn’t particularly easy to miss. A large sigh hung over a pair of white french doors let them know just which Princess belonged in these quarters. That and the giant portrait hanging beside of it on the wall were dead giveaways.

  
“That…is really fucking creepy. And I think my face is something that deserves to be framed,” Lance muttered, squeezing her hand gently.

  
Katie shivered, taking a deep breath. “Yeah. Yeah it is. Thanks for coming with me today though. I’m not sure I could have done it without the emotional support. She scares the shit out of me if I’m honest.”

  
“I think if her and the Zodiac Killer got into a staring match, the guy would turn himself in just to get away.”

  
Well that…was certainly, terrifyingly true.

  
She reached out, knocking once with the brass handle before she turned to unlock it. The room was just as someone might expect it: a walk in closet, a glass table decorated with Cosmo magazines, an HD television, and the largest shoe collection in the world. Pressed against the back wall, framed by two large windows, was the canopy bed Nyma slept in. The lights were dark, but Katie could see the girl start to stir.

  
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t a loser and her weirdo boyfriend. What the hell do you think  you two are doing here?” her voice was cold, like thick icicles firing into her heart. They certainly were aimed to kill.

  
“I um…I cam to apologize. I made you a hangover thing. We both said some pretty shitty things last night.”  Did her voice sound as shaky out loud as it did in her head?

  
Nyma stood, raising an eyebrow as she loved upon them. Step, by step, by step, she grew closer, until Katie could hear her heart all but thundering in her ears. Lance grew silent beside her, an oddity for him. Even the pink fuzzy slippers on her feet were intimidating.

  
“You really think I’d let you back into my world just because you brought me a little drink this morning,” she laughed, filled with vile cruelty, “You’re worth nothing to me Katherine Holt. I can find someone just as desperate to escape the social slums as you were. And I bet they’ll listen better than someone as ungrateful as you were, bitch.”

  
Without another word, she swallowed the drink down. The tension in the air was finally broken when Nyma choked, stumbling backwards. Katie’s eyes grew wide, trying to reach out to catch her supposed friends hand. The girl pulled away, collapsed backwards, through the glass table. It shattered, pieces flying across the room. One nearly hit Katie’s foot, but Lance pulled her away in time.

  
“Holy shit,” it was all she could do, falling backwards. She felt sick, he mind running wild, “Holy shit what just happened?”

  
Lance rushed forward, pressing his hand against the girl’s pulse. It seemed useless. The way she laid motionless, blood pooling from the glass lacerations, was enough to assure them of what they already knew.

  
 “Fuck Katie, I think she’s dead.”


	8. The Me Inside of Me: Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Casually updates a chapter of this while I’m at a hostel in Londo

_Dear Diary,_

_Might teen angst bullshit officially has a body count. Nyma might be dead but she’s more popular than ever. They found her suicide note, the one I wrote for her after accidentally giving her a drain cleaner murder cocktail. The school erupted Queen had been murdered, so where now did her crown go? Allura? Haggar? Or even me?_

_But god I don’t want it. I don’t want that responsibility. I can’t even be trusted to not commit manslaughter! But can we really trust someone like Haggar? School would be better without someone at its throne, but that’s not how things work when the only thing that matters more than prom and AP exams is your social standing. Royalty or peasant, which lot do you throw yourself in with?_

“I can’t believe we don’t even get a full day of school off!” Allura sighed, playing with the split ends of her hair.

Katie snapped her notebook closed. Now more than ever no one could see its contents. This would be her memoir, about a murder she had committed with her boyfriend. They had barely spoken since her frantic scribbling of Nymas familiar hand writing on the back of a Vogue Magazine.

Allura continued, “I heard Coran wants to hold some sort of school assembly to talk about her death. It’s such a tragedy don’t you think? That she never told us. There was nothing we could do to help.”

The cold cackle from Haggar cut through the somber air of the hallway, “You’d really feel sorry? We hated her. All of us did. Even you Little Miss Sunshine.”

Her retort was followed with silence. The true weight of the situation finally settled in. Katie tried to keep the panic at bay. A fear that someone would find out. Every pair off eyes new and at any moment the police officers would break through the doors of her school answer drag her off to prison. Where she rightfully belonged.

A stranger approached them. They never would have dared that when Nyma was still around. “Just wanted to say I’m sorry about your friend. All of us in the debate club thought she was such a vapid shallow bitch but I guess she had her own demons to work through.”

The fear quickly subsided into anger. That’s what people thought? She was some martyr of the teenage condition? She was more than vapid, more than a bitch. Nyma had crawled from the very depths of hell to spread a plague of misery on the modern day youth. Every word that came from her mouth was a dagger, coated in a slow active poison so she could watch her prey squirm as they died. In some fucked up way, maybe her death was a positive change to the world.

“Katie!” A second surprise for the day, Lance was actually speaking to her. He looked tired, jumpy. Yeah, that was a feeling she could relate to. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

She tried to ignore Allura’s inquisitive eyebrow raise. “Yeah. Let’s um...go somewhere private. I’ll meet you in class?”

His hand. It was still soft. Warm. But there was a weight there, hard to truly pinpoint. Maybe it memory associated guilt. The last time...the last time they had held hands someone died.

They went to a secluded part of the school: a table close to where all the stoners smoked at lunch. The smell lingered still, but that was the least of her concerns at the moment.

“I’m sorry,” it was the first thing out of his mouth, “my god I’m so sorry. I made a stupid fucking joke and now-“

Katie’s hand shot out, covering his mouth, “Shut up Lance. Can we not announce our very very private and dirty laundry to the entire school because your natural volume is perpetually set to 10? It was an accident and...and things seem better this way right?”

He was skeptical. And she was too. It was a mockery: trying to convince herself that what they had done had any justification in the real world.

“People think she’s some kind of angel now. That her life was some Shakespearean tragedy. Maybe we should let people believe that. I can’t afford to go to jail, my dad might lose his job and...and Matt wants to work for NASA! And your family needs you Lance,” he held her hand tightly, “your sister and your brother and even your dad. So maybe we keep our mouths shut and the world is better off. One less high school bitch and the issue of teenage suicide finally gets some light. Win-win-win right?”

The justification made her sick. The way her voice cracked at the end. Even she didn’t believe her own words. But Lance...he seemed to be visibly relaxing.

“Right. Okay. One accident shouldn’t define our entire lives! We didn’t mean to do anything. And maybe without some Queen the worker bees at school will finally start to branch out?”

They were feeding off of each other now. Cyclical lies to find any sort of comfort in. Any sort of reason for the ruin they had caused.

“Exactly,” katie took a shaky breath, kissing his cheek, “Walk me to class? We’re getting out after fourth period so maybe we could go to 7/11 and get a slushie afterwards? I heard they’re bringing peanut butter flavor.”

The walk back was much lighter. At last she’d managed to push the haunting reality to the back of her mind. That was until she entered Mr. Smythe’s Class.

It didn’t seem too abnormal at first. He always preferred the seats to be circular.

‘ _Just as Socrates with his students, we will converse eye to eye!’_ He had said the first day of classes.

But on every desk was a copy of a very familiar note.

_Dear World,  
Maybe you’ll believe it. Maybe you won’t. But the world was misery, weighing me down like a concrete prom queen crown. I’m more than some popular girl. The expectations I have been held to have left a myriad of scars._

She dropped it and ran. No more. The world was taunting her now. She saw the body again. The blood pooling from where the glass of the broken table had penetrated her temple. She could hear it. The deadly thud. The silence. Nymas mocking voice.

‘Oh so now you can’t handle it? Well suck it up bitch, you’re stuck with me now.’

Katie dropped to her knees and screamed. Her body shook with sobs. A familiar voice called her name, and she looked to meet those purple eyes. Keith. There was nothing to say. Just stare. Until finally, he turned and left.

_What the fuck have you done Katherine?_


End file.
